Mike I love tall guys roflmao. I wonder what they see way up there?? Glad you are still bored. Well...wish you weren't but it is to our advantage :-) First year growing MG trees and I just love them! Funny thou on how different they also grow depending on where they are located at. In the ground or pots...all day sun or more shade. Lucy

You are so lucky having that lake view and that mountain view and improved on that even with your beautiful plantings, congratulations! But living on a city lot, we can also improve, I only have a little pond and a lot of hostas, improving on that. Bernd

Lynn, your list of breakfasts is amazing, but what's even more incredible these days is that you make it a priority to sit down as a family for breakfast. It's such a rarity in our fast-paced world. Growing up we always sat down as a family for breakfast and I have fond memories of that. Our children ate on the run, for the most part, but did have something before leaving the house, even if I handed it to them on their way out the door! Here's a recipe for steel-cut oatmeal done in the crockpot overnight: Slow Cooker, Apple Cinnamon Steel-Cut Oatmeal By Monica Servings: 5 1-cup servings Ingredients 2 apples, peeled, cored, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (2-1/2 to 3 cups chopped) 1-1/2 cups fat-free milk 1-1/2 cups water 1 cup uncooked steel-cut oats 2 tablespoons brown sugar 1-1/2 tablespoons butter, cut into 5-6 pieces 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 2 teaspoons ground flax seed 1/4 teaspoon salt Optional garnishes: chopped nuts, raisins, maple syrup, additional milk or butter Directions Coat inside of 3-1/2 quart (or larger) slow cooker with cooking spray. Add all ingredients (except optional toppings) to slow cooker. Stir, cover, and cook on low for 7 hours. Spoon oatmeal into bowls; add optional toppings, if desired. Store leftovers in refrigerator. Freezes well. To reheat single servings: Put 1-cup cooked oatmeal in microwave proof bowl. Add 1/3 cup fat-free milk. Microwave on high for 1 minute; stir. Continue cooking for another minute, or until hot. Recipe can be doubled in 6-quart or larger slow cooker. Increase cooking time 1 hour.

Nothing. After a couple of hours' sleep, I was in the garden a bit before 8 (it rained some last night, but not muddy) picking regular peas and edible-pod ones, green beans and lettuce to take to the two churches that I attend, one at ten and the other at 10:30. After clean-up ... it was just 11 when I got out of here, dropped the tray of veggies at the 10:30 one just before service was over, got to the second just before 11:30, when not only service but much of coffee hour was over, with some heading home. So ... I had coffee and a few cookies just before noon. Canadians will know what "Tim-bits" are ... (Tim Hortons, nation-wide popular coffee house, carries donut holes, calls them "Tim-bits" which one can purchase as singles, by the few or by the box) ... well ... I've found that they have donut-holes at one No Frills store in town (and a couple don't seem to) so I bought a box and had several with milk when I returned home in the early afternoon. Did someone say, "Not very balanced and nutritious a diet, that"? Guilty as charged, I guess. A few days ago I put three heaping tablespoons of Cream of Wheat into a bowl with water and salt, microwaved it for 2? 3? min. Not enough water, I guess - usually it cooks around the edge, still gruelly in the middle, needs a stir and another shot. This time, it was thick and dry. It took me several minutes, after adding water, of gentle, stroking stirring to get the lumps cleared out. We've had a rainy, cool spring and start of summer, with crops delayed. I was pleased the other day to see that my turnips were growing well, but when friend and I looked at them today, some tops were drooping - they were rotting at the top. Little black bugs had got into them and several were soft and mushy inside, largely eaten away. We have a gardening guru on phone-in over province-wide section of national radio every Monday, but tomorrow's a holiday so he may be in on Tuesday, so I'll try to get through to find out what I need do to combat the little devils. Also, almost didn't plant cucumbers, as for three years their leaves have turned golden, then go brown and crispy - from blight, they say - just after flowering, when fruit is getting started ... but put some in ... and I see that the leaves of one hill are getting that golden cast, again. Drat! Good wishes for a beautiful summer week. ole joyful